The Mission: Find Life! exhibit at the Pacific Science Center in Seattle, WA shows how astrobiologists search for life elsewhere in the Universe, studying extreme environments to understand the potential habitability of extraterrestrial environments and examining how life might arise on planets orbiting stars different from our Sun. The exhibit features research at the Virtual Planetary Laboratory and runs March 18-September 4, 2017. Videos from the exhibit can be viewed from this link.

Get set for launch. “Eyes on Exoplanets” will fly you to any planet you wish—as long as it's far beyond our solar system. This fully rendered 3D universe is scientifically accurate, allowing you to zoom in for a close look at more than 1,000 exotic planets known to orbit distant stars.

Astronomy is a textbook published by OpenStax, a national non-profit project to develop high-quality intro textbooks free to students. Senior authors are Andrew Fraknoi, David Morrison, and Sidney Wolff. The project had the help of over 75 astronomers and astronomy educators, to make sure that the text is up-to-date, authoritative, and educationally sound.
Ancillary materials are being developed. Authors and instructors can share syllabi, teaching materials, handouts, labs, etc. at the Open Education Resources (OER) Commons website: https://www.oercommons.org/groups/openstax-astronomy/1283/

Rising Stargirls announces the release of their new Teaching and Activity Handbook! By integrating creative strategies such as free writing, visual art, and theater exercises, this new innovative astronomy curriculum addresses each girl as a whole by providing an avenue for individual self-expression and personal exploration that is interwoven with scientific engagement and discovery.
Hands-on activities, educator resources, and a suggested structure for workshops are provided in this manual. It is meant for use it in classrooms and informal learning environments anywhere in the world. The activities are created for middle-school girls, ages 10-15.

With gorgeous graphics, supporting background reading, and three inquiry- and standards-based, field tested activities, this poster is a great addition to any middle or high school classroom. It explores the connection between extreme environments on Earth, and potentially habitable environments elsewhere in the Solar System.

In December 2011, high in the central Andes of Chile, NASA scientists launched the prototype Planetary Lake Lander, a testing platform for the development of robots that are capable of making scientific decisions based on the data they collect.
Dr. Nathalie Cabrol leads a team of researchers working on these smart robots, which will expand our ability to search for life in the universe.

The Search for the Origin of Life takes a personal look at scientists around the United States working with the NASA Astrobiology Institute (NAI) to understand the origin of life. Attempting the seemingly impossible, these researchers want to answer one of humanity's oldest questions - how did life begin? Travel with them to some of our planet Earth's most extreme environments - from the frozen glaciers of the Canadian Arctic, to the inhospitable thermal springs of Yellowstone National Park, and to mysterious caves in Italy. An educational guide is also available to download.

Astrobiobound gives middle and high school students an opportunity to take a crack at planning an astrobiology-specific NASA science mission to Mars, helping them to learn how science and systems engineering play a part in achieving their goal.

NAI scientists and their international partners are featured in this documentary which has aired both on PBS and NASA-TV. The program highlights cutting edge field work looking at unique habitats and survival mechanisms of life on Earth.

This is an integrated science curriculum for ninth or tenth grade based on the theme of evolution and delivered on CD-ROM. It’s six modules span the breadth of astrobiology research, from cosmic evolution through the evolution of life, and beyond.

WAMC’s radio program "To The Best Of Our Knowledge", NAI Principal Investigator Doug Whittet talks about astrobiology, and the ongoing research and education activities of his New York Center for Astrobiology (NYCA), seated at RPI.

NOVA’s ScienceNOW series, hosted by Neil de Grasse Tyson, released an episode called Hunt for Alien Earths devoted to the work of astronomers who search for planets orbiting other stars that might host life.

Tune into this podcast from Omega Tau, a wide-reaching series from Stuttgart, Germany, for an interview with NAI’s Director Carl Pilcher. He gives a great introduction to the NAI, astrobiology, and the search for life elsewhere in the Universe.

CLASSROOM MATERIALScience Fiction Stories with Good Astronomy & Physics
Prof. Andrew Fraknoi (Foothill College) has compiled a selective list of short stories and novels that use more or less accurate science and can be used for teaching or reinforcing astronomy or physics concepts.

This booklet contains five inquiry- and standards-based classroom activities for grades 5-8 and three math extensions spanning topics from Defining Life, to Determining the Chances of Extraterrestrial Life.

Watch John Delanos TEDx talk about a survey of astrobiology research topics masterfully conveyed as a “story of us.” The talk ranges from the manufacture of organic molecules in space to extrasolar planets, to hyperthermophilichemolithoautotrophs!

Out of billions of galaxies and billions of stars, how do we find Earth-like habitable worlds? What is essential to support life as we know it? In this TED Ed video, astrobiologist Ariel Anbar provides a checklist for finding life on other planets.

NASA’s Cassini mission captured dazzling imagery of Saturn’s moon Enceladus, detailing plumes of ice particles and water vapor erupting from the surface and extending hundreds of kilometers into space making it an object of astrobiological study.

You can now display images of the intriguing world of Titan in your classroom, office, or home! In addition to the beautiful image on the front of the poster, there are lesson plans and background reading on the back.

Microbial Life is a freely accessible digital library dedicated to the diversity, ecology, and evolution of the microbial world. Engage students with hands-on activities and other curriculum-based resources that cover astrobiological topics.

Interested in using astrobiology to teach math? Already teaching astrobiology and want to bring in some math problem sets? The Astrobiology Math booklet was developed by Dr. Sten Odenwald at NASA as part of the Space Math at NASA project.

The Big Picture Science radio show, produced by the SETI Institute, takes listeners on a journey with modern science research through lively and intelligent storytelling. A special astrobiology collection is available.

Nova has combined the latest telescope images with dazzling animation, immersing audiences in the sights and sounds of alien worlds. Astrobiologists explain how these places are changing how we think about the potential for life in our solar system.